Let's talk a little about Doxing

By using the Internet we expose ourselves to the theft of our personal data, since there are multiple risks of information theft, although some international intelligence agencies have access to portals that provide them with confidential information. This with the purpose of tracking people with judicial arrest warrants who have been accused of having committed some legal infraction, it is also true that there are institutions and states that access our data illegally.

Illegal access to data has been considered a practice that has begun to generate concern on a global scale, because these actions are considered invasive and authoritarian procedures, to the point of being labeled as electronic operations where illegal information is stolen.

These electronic operations where information is stolen are called illegal doxing, doxing itself is nothing more than a form of harassment that consists of revealing personal data or documents on the Internet or, directly, the complete identity of a person, without their consent.

Generally the data, which are usually disclosed by those who do illegal doxing, is personal information among which stand out; address, email, phone numbers and even names of our closest relatives.

Illegal doxing usually causes emotional disorders in the people attacked, mainly anguish, panic and alarm in adolescents, young people and adults, since there is no age when it comes to being victims of this dangerous action to which we are exposed when using the Internet.

A little to refer the risks of "doxing", recently this practice is facing problems with the big tech companies and the Hong Kong government, this because, the Hong Kong authorities say that this activity has spread in its territory since the mass protests of 2019 and that it must curb it to protect the personal information of its citizens, and for this they are planning to reform the data protection law.

➊ Narayan Liu Social Media Companies Contemplate Leaving Hong Kong Over Anti-Doxing Laws. Link

➋ Cannataci J Balancing Privacy and Transparency and Redefining Their New Boundaries in the Internet Ecosystem. Link

The cover image was designed by the author: @lupafilotaxia, incorporating the public domain image background: Source / Author: CeruleanSon, 2017